UC Riverside (5-23, 3-15 Big West) at
UC Irvine (22-5, 14-2 Big West)
Date: Thursday, March 2
Time: 7 p.m. (PST)
Location: Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
* Senior Night

UC Irvine (22-5, 14-2 Big West) at
CSU Bakersfield (6-20, 3-15 Big West)
Date: Saturday, March 4
Time: 2 p.m. (PST)
Location: Icardo Center (3,497) - Bakersfield, Calif.

* UC Irvine Athletics is utilizing mobile ticketing and a clear bag policy.

IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine women's basketball closes out the regular season this week, starting with a home game against UC Riverside on Thursday, March 2. The Anteaters will honor their seniors - Naomi Hunt and Nyagoa Gony - following the 7 p.m. showdown at the Bren Events Center. UCI will then make its way to CSU Bakersfield for a 2 p.m. tilt on Saturday, March 4.
 
STARTING FIVE: STORYLINES
• UC Irvine (14-2) has locked up a top-two seed and is still in the hunt for the program's first Big West regular-season title as it is right behind league-leader Long Beach State (16-2). The Anteaters have not lost by double digits this season with three of its five setbacks, including its only two conference defeats, coming by two points. They have not lost back-to-back games this year.
 
• With a 68-66 overtime victory against Hawai'i last Saturday, the 'Eaters set a school record with 22 overall wins. They have back-to-back 20-win campaigns for the first time since 1983-84 and 1984-85. UCI has five 20-win seasons in program history with three coming in head coach Tamara Inoue's seven-year tenure.
 
• UC Irvine has been on a dominant run in conference action, losing only 10 Big West regular-season games in the last three years. Since 2020-21, they have put up 39 regular-season conference victories and a league-leading .796 win percentage.
 
• UCI was 20th in the latest College Insider Women's Mid-Major Top 25. The Anteaters have been featured in the poll for 10 consecutive weeks with a high ranking of 13th.
 
• The 'Eaters are also 10th in the nation in scoring defense (as of Feb. 27). They have held 21 of their 27 opponents to 60 points or less (18-3).

REWRITING HISTORY
With two regular-season games remaining, UC Irvine has already set numerous milestones. On Saturday, Feb. 25, the Anteaters earned their program-record 22nd overall win. They also own a program-best 11 true road victories, and matched the standard of 14 conference wins, which was set last year. In addition, UCI had a school-record tying nine-game win streak from Dec. 17-Jan. 19.
 
BIG WEST SEEDING
For the third year in a row, UC Irvine (14-2) has secured a top-two seed in next week's Big West Championships. The Anteaters are currently second behind Long Beach State (16-2), but are still in the hunt for the program's first Big West regular-season title. The 'Eaters will need some help, however, as they can take the championship with two wins and at least one Beach loss. If UCI splits, it would need LBSU to lose both of its games.
 
LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN
Over the last three seasons, no team has been better in Big West regular-season games than UCI. The Anteaters are coming off back-to-back four-loss campaigns, combining for a 39-10 (.796) league record since 2020-21. They had a streak of 11 consecutive regular-season conference wins come to an end with their overtime loss to Cal State Fullerton on Jan. 26.
 
HOME COOKING
Since 2017-18, UC Irvine is 58-22 (.725) at the Bren Events Center. The Anteaters, who are 10-2 at the Bren this year, saw a 13-game home win streak snapped on Jan. 26.
 
IN THE RANKINGS
UCI was 20th in the latest College Insider Women's Mid-Major Top 25. The Anteaters have been featured in every poll since Dec. 27 and were receiving votes for five weeks prior to that. Their highest ranking was 13th on Jan. 24.
 
TENACIOUS D
UC Irvine is 10th in all of NCAA Division I in scoring defense with its 53.6 points allowed per game coming in behind Norfolk State, No. 1 South Carolina, No. 13 Duke, Little Rock, Campbell, Fairleigh Dickinson, Princeton, Green Bay and Vermont. The 'Eaters have held 21 of their 27 opponents to 60 points or less. Their season-high in points allowed was 67 in an overtime win at Hawai'i on Jan. 19. UCI also ranks 21st in the nation in steals (10.4 spg) and 28th in turnovers forced (19.8/gm).
 
SCOUTING THE HIGHLANDERS
UC Riverside (5-23, 3-15 Big West) is on a six-game losing streak after falling to Hawai'i, 60-49, last Thursday, Feb. 23. Jordan Webster leads the Highlanders with 12.5 points per outing, while Matehya Bryant has registered 8.6 points and a team-best 7.0 rebounds per contest.
 
SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with UC Riverside, 41-26, but has won the last four. The Anteaters defeated the Highlanders on the road, 56-45, in the first meeting of the season on Feb. 11. Hunter Hernandez led all players with 16 points, Nevaeh Parkinson had a game-high 11 rebounds and Nyagoa Gony finished with a career-best six blocks.
 
SCOUTING THE ROADRUNNERS
CSU Bakersfield (6-20, 3-15 Big West) suffered its seventh-straight loss with a 57-44 setback at Cal State Fullerton on Saturday, Feb. 25. Hennie van Schaik is tops on the squad with 11.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.
 
SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with the Roadrunners, 12-8, but has won the last four. The two teams' first meeting of the year came in the Big West opener back on Dec. 31, 2022, with UCI claiming the 55-49 victory in Irvine.
 
LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine's program-record 22nd win came in dramatic fashion as Nevaeh Parkinson's layup with 0.4 seconds left in overtime gave the Anteaters a 68-66 victory over Hawai'i last Saturday at the Bren Events Center. UCI went up by four early in the extra period before going down, 66-64, after back-to-back 3-pointers from the Rainbow Wahine. Like they've done all year, the 'Eaters kept their composure with some big defensive stops before Amelia Scharpf tied it up on a jumper in the paint. UC Irvine continued to lock in defensively, getting the ball on the baseline with 1.4 seconds remaining. That's when it executed the game-winning play with Déja Lee finding Parkinson on the inbounds for the victory. Parkinson finished with her second-straight double-double, putting up 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Lee and Nikki Tom tied for the team lead with 14 points each. Diaba Konate added 10 points, six boards and six assists.
 
EXTRA TIME
UCI has played five overtime games this year, the most in program history. The 'Eaters, who are 3-2 in those contests, have outscored their opponents 65-49 in extra time.
 
FROM THE STRIPE
UC Irvine ranks second in The Big West and 29th in the NCAA in free throw percentage (77.1%). The Anteaters have been slightly better in conference games where they are shooting 78%. They had three flawless performances, going 7-for-7 at UC Riverside, and 8-for-8 against CSU Bakersfield and at Long Beach State. Individually, Diaba Konate is tops in The Big West and sixth in the nation with a 91% clip. She made 28 consecutive free throws before missing her first attempt at Cal Poly on Feb. 9.
 
AIN'T THAT GRAND
Entering her 100th career game played on Feb. 15, junior transfer Diaba Konate, who was averaging 7.7 ppg, needed 16 to reach 1,000 points in her collegiate career. She got that and more, netting a season-high 20 in a 74-60 OT win against UCSB. She now sits at 1,020 points, 332 rebounds, 364 assists and 208 steals.
 
100 AND COUNTING
Seventh-year head coach Tamara Inoue earned her 100th career win in the non-conference finale against Grand Canyon on Dec. 21. Inoue is the second coach in program history to reach the century mark as her 114 victories rank second all-time behind only Dean Andrea (158), who spent 13 years at the helm from 1978-1991. Inoue, the 2021 co-Big West Coach of the Year has led the 'Eaters to two of the program's three national postseason tournaments and three of their five 20-win campaigns.
 
HUNT, WILLIAMS, HERNANDEZ OUT FOR SEASON
UC Irvine lost three key starters, Naomi Hunt, Olivia Williams and Hunter Hernandez, to season-ending injuries in Big West play. The latest blow came against UC Santa Barbara on Feb. 15, when Hernandez went down with a knee injury. She was the Anteaters' leading scorer (12.0 ppg) and rebounder (5.5 rpg). Hunt, who was averaging 11.7 points and 4.9 boards, has been out since the conference opener against CSU Bakersfield on Dec. 31. In addition, Williams suffered a season-ending injury at Hawai'i on Jan. 19. She had started every game this year, averaging 8.9 points per outing.
 
GIVE AND TAKE
Diaba Konate leads the team and ranks third in The Big West in both assists (3.4 apg) and steals (2.3 spg) per game. Konate has dished out  3+ dimes 17 times with a season-high seven coming vs. LIU on Nov. 25. She has also recorded at least one steal in 23 of her 24 appearances, including a season-best five takeaways at Fresno State (Dec. 11).
 
MINUTES LEADER
Sophomore Nikki Tom is tops on the squad and third in The Big West at 34.7 minutes per outing. Tom has logged 35+ minutes in 14 consecutive contests. She played all 45 in last Saturday's overtime win against Hawai'i.
 
COURT PRESENCE
Tom has been a steady presence on the court, starting every game and averaging 8.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.9 steals. She has 12 double-figure scoring performances, including in each of the last two contests. Back on Nov. 25, the Fresno native had a career-high 18 points on a near perfect outing where she was 6-of-7 from the field (4-4 3FG) vs. LIU. Tom also had 15 points (4-6 FG, 6-6 FT) in a 54-52 win at CSUN on Jan. 28. In addition, the 5-foot-9 guard registered a career-high five steals and six assists vs. Westcliff on Dec. 14. She later matched that steal total with five takeaways vs. LBSU (Feb. 4).
 
STARTING LINE
UC Irvine is 16-3 overall, and 14-2 this season, when sophomore Déja Lee is in the starting lineup. On Jan. 5, she stepped seamlessly back into the first five as she registered career highs of 22 points, eight rebounds and five steals to lift UCI to a 67-38 win over UC Davis. The 5-foot-9 point guard had her second 20-point effort against UC San Diego on Feb. 2 where she was 5-for-8 from deep while also dishing out a career-high seven assists. In the season opener, Lee came off the bench to lead all players with 16 points (7-9 FG), eight boards, five dimes and no turnovers against Whittier. For the season, Lee is tops on the squad with a 36.9% (31-84) clip from beyond the arc.
 
INSIDE PRESENCE
Nevaeh Parkinson, Nevaeh Dean and Nyagoa Gony have boosted UCI's inside presence this year. Parkinson, who has three double-doubles, is averaging 8.4 points and a team-best 7.3 rebounds in Big West play, while Gony has 1.5 blocks per outing. Parkinson (52%) and Dean (44%) also rank first and second on the squad in FG%.
 
WEEKLY HONORS
Sophomore Hunter Hernandez earned her second Big West Player of the Week award on Feb. 13. She was recognized after averaging 20.5 points in a pair of double-digit road victories at Cal Poly and UC Riverside. The 5-foot-9 guard shot 56% from the field and 92% at the free throw line in those two games. Hernandez's first honor came on Jan. 23, following a road trip where she put up 16.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in wins at UCSB and at Hawai'i. On the season, Hernandez has 15 double-figure scoring games with 11 coming in conference play, three 20-point performances and three double-doubles. She averaged 14.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 2.2 apg and 1.4 spg in league contests.

DOWN TO THE WIRE
UC Irvine had a handful of close contests this season with 11 games decided by five points or less (7-4). The 'Eaters had their third game-winner in the final seconds last Saturday as Nevaeh Parkinson's layup before the buzzer gave them the 68-66 victory over Hawai'i. In non-conference play, Diaba Konate sank the go-ahead jumper with 0.2 ticks on the clock in a 60-58 triumph at Sac State, and Parkinson converted a layup with 4.2 seconds remaining for a 54-53 victory at Seattle U.
 
UP NEXT
UC Irvine will open postseason play in the quarterfinal round of the Big West Championships next Wednesday, March 8.